Battle Girls - Time Paradox Episode #03

Oda's desire for the Crimson Armor sets things in motion in this alternate past.

What They Say:Sky Maiden

The Review:Content: (please note that content portions of a review may contain spoilers)With word that Oda is on her way to gain the Crimson Armor, there isn't exactly a lot of fear on Yoshimoto's part as she's actively looking forward to being able to play outdoors, as she put it. With Hide fully behind Oda at this point and gaining a few moves as she settles into life in this strange past where famous people are all women, and nary a man seems to be seen, she's at least adjusting fairly well, unless it comes to riding a horse. I continue to be very glad to see she's ditched the school uniform and is wearing what I guess is more traditional clothing for the time period, though unlike all the other women, she doesn't have a chest to show off. Oda's continues to be pretty in your face for a fanservice draw, but it's largely pretty much expected.

Explaining where their journey will follow to Hide is the first order of business though and getting her on the same page and getting her to accompany them is fairly easy, though the journey doesn't take too long before they run into Yoshimoto who is pretty dismissive of ODa's plan. That said, she'll certainly let her try for it but it'll be one that will be a challenge laid down between them. When it comes to the actual battle, which is largely set up through a misunderstanding since Hide throws out an English word, it turns into a series of games between the two that they must use to achieve victory. Admittedly, you want to see some action going on between these two generals, but the parlay of words and ideas isn't that bad either since it shows some level of smarts on Oda's part that may not always be apparent.

The games that get picked are pretty varied and juts keep going and going, like bowling, swimming and other physical activities. The whole thing just wears everyone out which is pretty adorable as it works towards the last match. The ever impressive kite fighting. Actually, there is something to be said for this as it's visually an interesting approach as Ieyasu and Hide are tied to the large kites with heavy ropes in order to be flung around in the air against each other. The Crimson Armor is at stake, so Hide has to go through with it. It's a good bit of comedy overall, especially where you have Hide panicking so much in comparison to the calmness of Ieyasu, but there's also something neat about it as it unfolds, making you grin when you least suspect it.

In Summary:With quite a few parts to go, Battle Girls could have a bit of a run to it, or it could be fairly rushed, but it continues to defy expectations with how much fun it's turning out to be. The first episode wasn't a keeper but as it's moved on, it's managed to explain itself decently and to start moving forward with the full storyline. Normally the majority of these characters would annoy the hell out of me, but something here manages to click just right. There's a lot to like here and the episode feels like it goes by pretty quickly, leaving you entertained and looking forward to me. Though I'm not quite sure I have a favorite character here, I'm enjoying the situation and the fanservice as it's all good natured, light entertainment.